Andrei Klishas
In the state Duma a bill providing for the abolition of absentee ballots at the elections of the President of Russia. Document registered in the electronic database of the Duma on Friday, March 3.
The project involves amendments to the law “About presidential elections of the Russian Federation”. It was approved by the Central election Commission, said RIA Novosti, one of the authors of the initiative — the Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on constitutional legislation Andrey Klishas.
The Senator stressed that he does not consider absentee ballots of some mechanism of falsification, however, among the Russian citizens has formed the opposite opinion. “Elections must be more transparent, the risks, if any, should be taken into account, even if these concerns are unnecessary,” said Klishas.
According to him, are not at the place of registration, the Russians will be able not later than three days before the vote submitted by telephone or e-mail an application to vote at their place of stay to the processing of appeals, which is now established by the CEC. In case of receipt from a citizen of more than one application, all subsequent will be rejected.
In addition, the document envisages the introduction of mandatory broadcast from polling stations on election day. At the moment this provision is not enshrined in legislation, though a broadcast was conducted during the September elections to the state Duma, said the Senator.
As reported, the CEC Chairman, Ella Pamfilova, video surveillance will be organized at the stations during the presidential elections in the spring of 2018 in the territories, where 85-90 percent of the population of Russia. “Everything possible,” said she, reports TASS.
March 1, Pamfilova said that the Commission jointly with the lower house of Parliament and the Federation Council is working to create a system of voting without absentee ballots.
In November 2016, the deputies from the LDPR faction in the state Duma introduced a bill to abolish early voting on elections of all levels. MPs have also proposed to refrain from voting with absentee ballots and outside voting stations.